Latest Sport Hit by Match-fixing: Baseball?

Players of South Korea’s Samsung Lions toss their manager Joong-il Ryu into the air to celebrate their victory against Japan’s Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks during their championship of 2011 Asia Series baseball game at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium November 29, 2011.

South Korea’s pro baseball league has become the latest sport to be rocked by match-fixing allegations, with prosecutors said to be looking into whether some of the league’s players were part of such schemes.

Moon Sung-hyun, a pitcher for the Seoul-based Nexen Heroes, has told his team that he was indirectly approached to take part in match-fixing in 2010 but rejected the offer.

A spokesman at the Korea Baseball Organization, the pro league’s governing body, said Thursday that local prosecutors have uncovered allegations of match-fixing in baseball while conducting of an investigation about such activity in other sports, such as volleyball.

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The prosecutors couldn’t be reached for comment, but local media have reported that pitchers playing for the Seoul-based LG Twins were involved in match-fixing talks in which specific financial terms were discussed.

The KBO spokesman said such talks were hearsay, however, and the LG Twins issued a statement on Wednesday denying the allegations.

“If the prosecutors proceed to investigate (match-fixing allegations), the club will cooperate fully,” the LG Twins said, adding that players have firmly denied any involvement.

A spokesman for Nexen said Thursday that none of its players committed any wrongdoing.

It’s unclear whether any players were actually involved in such illegal activities, and the KBO says it hasn’t been notified about any formal investigation. Nevertheless, speculation about potential wrongdoing hurts what is South Korea’s most popular pro league.

The Korean pro soccer league was hit hard last year on the revelation that active and former players had participated in match-rigging schemes, while some players in the pro volleyball league are currently under investigation for match-fixing.

Some of the speculation about baseball match-fixing has been amplified by an unidentified person who, posing as a retired player, claimed to know of specific match-fixing incidents and that organized crime has been rigging matches for some time.

The KBO spokesman said this person also called the KBO posing as the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, making false accusations, and that the organization has asked the police to investigate the matter.

Individual teams of the Korean baseball league are conducting internal investigations regarding the match-fixing allegations, the KBO said.